With the holiday season upon us, we help retailers fine-tune their merchandising plans and order smarter so they can reap more salesWhen Sally Furrer, a merchandising specialist and consultant based in Libby, Mont., saw that a Midwestern retail ­­jewelry client’s inventory levels were at their highest point on Dec. 31, 2013—instead of a month prior—she knew a heart-to-heart was in order. “You should have the most merchandise a month before you anticipate a higher level of sales,” says Furrer.Late deliveries or anemic amounts of product can stunt holiday sales and cripple cash flow; meanwhile, inadequate assortments of price points can turn away buyers. What’s more, placing orders at the wrong cost and time of year could result in “a store full of merchandise and little cash at the end of the season,” says Abe Sherman, CEO of Buyers Intelligence Group (BIG) in Napa, Cali